In this section

SEFTON

SEFTON

INCE BLUNDELL

LITHERLAND

NETHERTON

LITTLE CROSBY

ORRELL AND FORD

LUNT

GREAT CROSBY

AINTREE

THORNTON

This parish, lying on the coast near the entrance of
the Mersey and bounded on the east and north by the
River Alt, has an area of 12,687½ acres. The surface
is level and lies very low, so that in rainy seasons the
Alt floods a considerable extent of land; the greatest
height is attained in the south, part of Orrell being
125 ft. above sea level.

Anciently the townships were arranged in four
quarters as follows: i, Sefton, with Netherton and
Lunt; ii, Ince Blundell, Little Crosby; iii, Thornton, Great Crosby; iv, Down Litherland with Orrell
and Ford, Aintree. Each quarter paid equally to the
county lay. (fn. 1) Within recent years the seaside townships of Waterloo and Seaforth, governed in combination, have been formed from Great Crosby and
Litherland respectively. In these a large urban
population has grown up, but the greater part of the
area is still rural. The agricultural land of the
parish is mainly arable, viz. 7,356 acres; while
1,869 acres are in permanent grass, and 240 in woods
and plantations. The population in 1901 was
45,846.

The parish has but little connexion with the general
history of the country. At Flodden Sir William
Molyneux of Sefton greatly distinguished himself, and
Henry Blundell of Little Crosby fell in the battle.
The change of religion made by Elizabeth was
most distasteful to the people. In 1624 and 1626
'riots and rescues,' occasioned by the unwelcome
visits of the sheriff's officers to seize the cattle of the
recusant William Blundell of Little Crosby, became a
Star Chamber matter, resulting in the imposition of a
heavy fine upon the perpetrators. (fn. 2) As was to be expected, in the Civil War the gentry took the king's
side, and their possessions were consequently sequestrated by the Parliament. The smaller people also
suffered. (fn. 3) The Lancashire Plot of 1694 brought
more trouble on the district, (fn. 4) but the risings of 1715
and 1745 do not appear to have drawn any support
from Sefton.

The principal landowners of the parish have long
been the lords of Sefton, Ince Blundell, and Little
Crosby. In 1792 the earl of Sefton, Henry Blundell,
and Nicholas Blundell contributed £192 to the land
tax out of £481 charged upon the parish. (fn. 5)

The life of the district in the first part of the
eighteenth century is well illustrated in Nicholas
Blundell's Diary. In the way of sports there were
hunting, coursing—the Liverpool hounds sometimes
going so far out as Little Crosby—horse-racing at
various places in the neighbourhood, as Great Crosby
and Aughton, cock-fighting, bull-baiting, and bowling
matches on the various greens. Visits were made
to Ormskirk—then relatively more important than at
present—to Lathom Spa, and to Liverpool; the latter
place might be reached by road in the coach or over
the sands on horseback. Nicholas Blundell fulfilled
the usual duties of a landlord, as when he fixed 'the
boundaries between Great Crosby and the Moorhouses
that each town might know their liberty to fish in'; (fn. 6)
and there were discussions about drainage, enclosures,
and other improvements, the Foremoss Pool gutter
being mentioned several times. Lord Molyneux
desired that 'the River Alt might be scoured as
usual,' and the setting and cutting of the star grass on
the sandhills had to be regulated. Smuggling was
also carried on: 'This night (says Squire Blundell) I
had a cargo of sixteen large ones brought to White
hall … . W.Ca. covered the cargo very well with
straw.' (fn. 7)

Every now and again, especially in winter, there
would be a 'merry night' at the hall, when the
squire's sword dance might be performed or his tricks
of legerdemain exhibited to divert the company.
Companies of players seem to have visited the district
occasionally, performing here and there as they found
patronage and accommodation. Of local customs he
particularly notices the throwing at the cock on
Shrove Tuesday, and the dressing of the crosses at
Great Crosby and Ince Blundell on Midsummer Day.
The Goose Feast at Great Crosby was regularly
celebrated in the middle of October with great
festivity; a maypole and morris-dancing are mentioned at Little Crosby, nor is the tossing of pancakes
forgotten. On 2 November, 1717, 'we dealt soul
loaves to the poor, it being the first time any soul
loaves were given here, as I remember.' At Easter
he gave the parish clerk '2d. instead of twelve paist
eggs.' On 31 December, 1723, 'there was a riding
for Anne Norris, who had beaten her husband.' He
records that on 6 October, 1717, 'it being near full
moon I cut my wife's hair off.'

When his new marl-pit was dug it was 'flowered,'
and the occasion was quite a festal one. A procession
was formed, 'the fourteen marlers had a particular
dress on their heads, and each of them carried a
musket or gun; the six garlands, &c., were carried by
young women in procession; the eight sword-dancers
went with them to the marl-pit, where they danced';
and a week later a large bull was baited, 'to admiration,' at the bottom of the new pit. Again, a week
later the marling was finished with feasting and
dancing. (fn. 8) Incidentally the diarist mentions the spinning of wool and the 'breaking' of flax. (fn. 9) The
preceding process of 'reeting' or retting flax is noticed
in an earlier document. (fn. 10) A peculiar word he uses is
'songoars,' for gleaners.

At the present time the stories of 'M. E. Francis,'
such as In a North Country Village, have made the life
of the rural portion of the district familiar.

The regulation of the Alt, effected by an Act
passed in 1779, (fn. 11) was of great importance to the
whole district. Its provisions may be summarized
thus: Nearly 5,000 acres of low-lying lands along
the banks of this stream in the parishes of Altcar,
Sefton, Halsall, and Walton were rendered almost
valueless by the overflowing of the water; certain
commissioners (fn. 12) were therefore empowered to change
and clear the course of the river below Bull Bridge in
Aintree and Melling, and to make a new channel in
Altcar, Formby, and Ravensmeols down to low-water
mark; to clear and change the course of several
tributary brooks, but without damage to the water
for Sefton mills; to plant star grass on the sandhills;
to take evidence as to damage and compensation,
appoint officers, raise money for the needful works
and salaries, and prosecute offenders. (fn. 13) The first
meeting of the commissioners was fixed for 18 May,
1779, in Sefton church. The expenses were to be
paid by an annual tax upon the owners or occupiers
of the low lands to be improved, assessed by an acre
rate according to the improvement effected; copies of
estimates, &c., were to be kept in the vestry of Sefton
church.

A detailed report on the state of the coast a
century ago has been printed. (fn. 14)

The church of St. Helen has a chancel
21 ft. by 44 ft., with an eastern vestry,
and north and south chapels 17 ft. by
25 ft., nave 21 ft. by 60 ft. with north and south
aisles 17 ft. wide, south porch, and west tower
12 ft. square with a tall stone spire. All measurements are internal. There is no structural division
between the nave and chancel, the nave taking up
the first four bays of the arcade from the west,
and the quire seats occupying the fifth. The fifth
and sixth bays are enclosed with screens on north
and south, and a line of screens runs across the church
at the west of the fifth bay. The eastern bay of the
chancel projects 18 ft. eastward from the line of the
chapels, and is lighted by an east window of five
lights, the mullions and tracery being modern, and
north and south windows of four lights, with uncusped tracery and two transoms.

The architectural history of the church is not a
long one, as the greater part was rebuilt in the sixteenth century, leaving too little older work standing
to give much clue to its earlier form. (fn. 16)

The east bay of the north chapel belongs to the
first half of the fourteenth century, and the west
tower is nearly contemporary with it. There was
formerly a north aisle of this date, part of its west
wall with the jamb of a west window still remaining. If this window was centrally placed the aisle
would have been narrower than at present; the north
arcade also was 15 in. further to the north than that
which now exists. There was at this time no south
aisle to the nave, as may be seen from the details of
the south-east buttress of the tower. In the early
part of the fifteenth century the north chapel seems
to have been lengthened westward, and at a later date
in the same century the north aisle was rebuilt and
made equal in width to the chapel. At some time in
the first half of the sixteenth century the chancel, the
south aisle and both arcades of the nave were rebuilt,
destroying all traces of former work except such as
have already been mentioned. A vestry east of the
chancel and a south porch also belong to this time.
There is some difficulty about the exact date. The
rebuilding has been attributed to Anthony Molyneux,
rector 1535–57, apparently on the strength of a passage in his will which mentions that he has 'made
so greatt costes of ye chauncell and revestrie.' If this
may be taken to mean a rebuilding of those parts of
the church for whose maintenance he as rector was
liable, the rest of the sixteenth-century work, being
of like detail and design, may well have been undertaken about the same time. But it is unlikely that
the rector did more than his particular share of the
work, and the few remains of inscriptions on glass
point to gifts of windows, at any rate, by other benefactors: Sir William Molyneux 1542, William Bulkeley
1543, and [Lawrence] Ireland 1540. These dates all
point to 1535–40 as the probable date of the rebuilding. It must, however, be noted that the quire stalls
bear the initials 1 M, which may refer to James
Molyneux, rector 1489–1509. These initials also
occur on the screen west of the stalls, but are
accompanied with ornament of distinct Renaissance
type, and it is extremely doubtful if this can be of so
early a date as the first decade of the sixteenth century. A displayed eagle also occurs on the stalls,
perhaps in reference to the arms of Cotton, to which
family Anthony's mother belonged. (fn. 17)

The present east window of the chancel is filled
with modern tracery, inserted about 1870, and replacing a tracery window of five lights with three
transoms, all openings being without cusps, and the
heads under the transoms rounded. The side windows are still of this type, as are those lighting the
south chapel and aisle, and would fit very well to the
probable date 1535–40. East of the chancel is a
low building, contemporary with it, and entered
from the west by a door on the south of the altar,
which is the 'revestre' built by Anthony Molyneux,
and still used for its original purpose.

The nave arcades are of six bays with coarsely moulded
arches and piers, with four engaged shafts and moulded
capitals and bases. The clearstory has four-light windows
with uncusped tracery, the mullions crossing in the
head, and all the nave roofs are of flat pitch and
modern. The weathering of a former high-pitched
roof remains on the east wall of the west tower.

The north chapel has a tall three-light east window
of early fourteenth-century style, (fn. 18) and the contemporary north window is flat-headed, of three trefoiled lights with reticulated tracery. Below it is
an arched recess, now containing a late thirteenthcentury effigy, while a somewhat later one lies near
by. The second window from the east has three
cinquefoiled lights under a segmental head, and the two
others to the west of it three cinquefoiled lights with
tracery over. The north doorway is small and plain,
the principal entrance to the church being by the
south porch, which has a four-centred outer arch
with a shield and 1 H S at the apex, and an upper
story lighted on the south by a four-light squareheaded window. Above it is a canopied niche, and
the porch, like the rest of the aisles and the clearstory, is finished with an embattled parapet and
short angle pinnacles. It retains its original flat
ceiling with heavy moulded oak beams, and the
Molyneux arms occur on the buttresses and the labels
of the outer arch.

The west tower is of three stages with diagonal
buttresses at the western angles and a vice in the
south-west angle. The west window of the ground
story is of two trefoiled lights with a quatrefoil over,
and the four belfry windows are of the same type.
In the intermediate stage are small single trefoiled
lights. The tall stone spire is quite plain, and rises
from a plain parapet with four low conical angle
turrets. It is to be noted that a plinth of the same
section as that on the tower is continued round the
later part of the north aisle, suggesting that it may
be re-used material from the former north aisle, which
seems to have been contemporary with the tower. (fn. 19)

The great interest of the church lies in its woodwork and monuments.

The rood screen, though damaged by repairs in
1820 and 1843, is a very fine example, with projecting canopies on either side. These are unfortunately
not in their original condition, the eastern canopy
having been formerly a canted tester with a panelled
soffit, and a brattishing of nine hanging cusped arches.
No other part of the rood loft remains, and the position of the stair which led to it is doubtful.

The screen has five openings, each with two cinquefoiled arches in the head divided by a pendant, and
in the central opening are double doors, unfortunately
not the original ones, which were destroyed at one or
other of the dates mentioned above. The bands of
ornament on the rails and cornice are richly wrought,
and show a mixture of the Gothic vine-trail with
Renaissance detail, as already noted. The pendants of
the western canopies are finished with angels holding
shields with Molyneux bearings or the emblems of
the Passion. The openings of the screen, as well as
of the side screens of the chancel, are filled in with
iron stanchions ending in fleurs de lys; these side
screens have good carved cornices and cresting, and
pierced tracery in the heads, but show no Italian
detail, and their lower panels are solid, with cinquefoiled heads. They appear to have had canopies at
one time, and to have lost them in some repair. In
the west bay of the chancel are fourteen stalls, three
being returned on each side of the chancel door, their
floor level being two steps above that of the pavement,
and the desks are set on a stone base with quatrefoiled
openings to the area below the floor of the stalls.
The standards at the ends of the desks are carved with
a variety of devices, the lower part being in all a
conventional pineapple, while above are deer, a lion,
a unicorn, a griffin, an owl mobbed by small birds,
an eagle, an antelope, &c. The letters 1 M occur
here as before noted. The screen across the north
aisle, at the west of the Blundell chapel, is somewhat
plainer than the rest, but has a good carved cornice
and pierced tracery in the head of each opening, and
on the lower panels a plain fluted linen pattern showing classic influence. Against the north wall of the
chapel is an early seventeenth-century seat with
panelled back and return benches on east and west,
and corresponding desks in front, having on the upper
part of one of the standards a seated squirrel, the
Blundell crest.

At the east end of the south aisle is another late
Gothic screen of very rich detail with elaborately
carved uprights and solid lower panels with ornament
derived from the linen pattern, and on the top a
canopy projecting east and west, the east side being
canted like the former east canopy of the wood
screen, and the west side coved. Both have ribs and
a carved cornice with pendants, but the south end of
the screen has been damaged by galleries, and is now
partly hidden by the Sefton pew, which was formerly
on the north side of the nave, and is of the same
date and detail as the screen at the west of the
Blundell chapel.

Both blocks of seats in the nave, twelve on each
side, belong probably to the second quarter of the
sixteenth century, and have good poppy heads and a
most interesting set of carved bench ends. Those in
the north block have crowned fleurs de lys on the four
corner bench ends, and the rest have, for the most
part, various conventional floral patterns. In the
south block the corner seats have the Molyneux cross,
while the rest have an alphabet, complete except for
x, y and z, one letter to each bench end. At first
sight they suggest some method of marking the seats
analogous to modern numbering, but the absence of
any such arrangement in the north block goes
to show that the letters are merely ornamental. It
must also be noted that the floor beneath the benches
is modern, so that they may not be in their original
positions. In various places the emblems of the
Passion occur, and several devices whose meaning is
obscure, and at the west end of the south aisle is a
churchwardens' pew containing work of the same
period, with a linen-pattern panelled front.

At the west end of the north aisle are the seats
once occupied by the members of the mock corporation of Sefton, the mayor's seat being in front of
the west respond of the north arcade.

The pulpit, which formerly stood against the middle
pier of the north arcade of the nave, is now set
against the rood screen on the north side of the entrance to the chancel, displacing the Sefton pew, now
in the south aisle. It is octagonal, with pilasters at
the angles and two tiers of moulded panels, the
whole surface being worked with arabesques in low
relief. It stands on a tall octagonal stem and has
over it an octagonal tester with pendants at the angles
and a panelled soffit. It is dated 1635, and has two
inscriptions, one round the tester:—
My sonne feare thou the Lorde and the Kinge and medle
not with them that are given to change,
and another round the cornice of the body of the
pulpit:—
He that covereth his sinne shall not prosper, but whoso
confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercie; happy
is the m[an]—
the end of the inscription being lost.

There are a few pieces of old stained glass. In the
east window of the south aisle are several symbols of
the Passion, and part of a rood, with an inscription
recording the gift of a window by Sir William
Molyneux, 1542. In the window near Margaret
Bulkeley's brass in the south aisle, is a partly modern
inscription recording the making of a window in her
memory in 1543, and in the next window is a third
inscription naming 'William' Ireland of Lydiate and
Ellen his wife, 1540. The word William is a
modern insertion; the original was Lawrence.

The traces of ritual arrangements, apart from those
already described, are not many. There are three
sedilia on the south side of the chancel, and a recess for
a piscina to the east of them, while in the north wall
of the chancel is a large arched recess with an ogee
head, now fitted with a door. It may be modern,
but the position is a normal one.

The north chapel as already noted belongs to the
early part of the fourteenth century, and the tomb
recess in its north wall is contemporary. In the east
wall, near the south end, is a double piscina of
c. 1330, with a flowing quatrefoil in the head over
two trefoiled arches. It may have been moved to its
present position at the building of the arcades in the
sixteenth century.

The font stands under the west tower, and is of
red sandstone, octagonal, with blank shields in sixfoils
on each face and raised fillets on the angles of bowl,
stem and base. It probably belongs to the end of
the fifteenth century, and has a pyramidal oak cover
inscribed R R : H M : C W. 1688. In the north, south,
and west walls of the tower are rectangular recesses,
those on the north and south extending eastward
beyond the line of their openings in the thickness of
the wall, and bearing marks of the fitting of shelves.
One such recess in this position would serve as a fontlocker to keep the chrismatory, &c., but the presence
of three points to some additional use, and this part
of the church may have been used as a vestry.

When the whitewash was taken off the arcades in
1891, black-letter texts of Jacobean date were found
in the spandrels of the arches. The panelling on
the east wall of the chancel was given by will by
Mrs. Anne Molyneux, c. 1730, (fn. 20) and the three brass
chandeliers hanging in the church were given in 1773.

There are six bells, the first four by Henry Oldfield of Nottingham, and the fifth and tenor of 1815
by Dobson of Downham. The inscriptions on the
first four are:—
Treble.—God bles the founder heareof. 1601.
Second.—Nos sumus constructi ad laudum (sic) Domini.
1601.
Third.—Hec campana beata Trinitate sacra fiat. Fere
God. Henri Oldfelde made thys Beyl.
Fourth as Third, omitting the word 'beata.'

The Latin inscriptions on the third and fourth
bells are a version of the mediaeval hexameter,
Trinitate sacra fiat haec campana beata,
and one or both of the bells may have been so
inscribed before their recasting by Oldfield.

The very interesting series of monuments begins
with the mailed effigy in the recess on the north of
the north-east chapel. The figure has knee-caps
which may be of leather, but is otherwise entirely in
mail, and wears a short surcoat and a sword-belt,
from which hangs a sword which he is drawing from
its sheath. On the left arm is a shield with the cross
moline of Molyneux. The date of the effigy is
c. 1280–1300, and it may represent William de
Molyneux, who died c. 1289. Near it is a second
effigy wearing a peaked bascinet with raised vizor, a
mail hauberk and short surcoat, and plate (or leather)
knee-caps and jambes, the feet being in mail. He is
bearded, and has a blank shield on the left arm, and
draws his sword like the other effigy. The date is
c. 1330, but there is nothing to show who is the
person represented. A curious detail is the crouching
human figure in a long gown on whom the feet of
the effigy rest. In the same chapel is a panelled altar
tomb with an alabaster slab and a damaged inscription
to Lady Joan Molyneux, 1440.

In the south aisle, and now enclosed by the Sefton
pew, is the fine brass of Margaret Bulkeley, 1528,
with a figure under a double canopy between four
shields, bearing the arms of Molyneux, Bulkeley,
Dutton, and Molyneux. At the feet is a long inscription recording her foundation of a chantry in
the church.

On the south side of the chancel is a floor-slab
with the brass figures of Sir William Molyneux and
his two wives, Jane (Rudge) and Elizabeth (Clifton),
1548. The inscription records his feat of capturing
two standards at Flodden, and over his head is the
Molyneux shield with the standards above it—only
one being now perfect, that of Huntly, with its
motto or cry 'Clanc tout.' Above each of the wives
was a lozenge with heraldry, one only being now left,
and below the inscription a shield with Molyneux
with ten alliances, and the motto 'En droit devant.'
The figure of Sir William is in armour of the time,
with the curious exception that the head is covered
with a coif of mail, and the lower part of a hauberk
shows above the knees. It is possible, as has been
already suggested elsewhere, that the figure represents
his actual appearance at Flodden, in old armour
hastily chosen from among the suits at Sefton on the
sudden alarm of war.

On an altar tomb just south of this slab, and
balancing the tomb of Lady Joan Molyneux on the
other side of the chancel, are the brass figures of Sir
Richard Molyneux, 1558, and his two wives, Eleanor
(Radcliffe) and Eleanor (Maghull). Below is a
rhyming inscription in eight lines and a group of five
sons and eight daughters. Of the marginal inscription there only remains enough to identify the tomb.

In the south-east chapel are later monuments, one
of white marble to Caryll Molyneux, third viscount,
1700, and others to his wife and daughter-in-law.

The most notable of the modern monuments is
that of Henry Blundell of Ince, who died in 1810;
it was designed by John Gibson and represents the
deceased relieving Genius and Poverty. (fn. 21)

The church plate consists of a chalice with the
letters [see figure below] and the inscription 'The gift
of Mrs. Alice Morton to the church of Sephton,
1695'; a flagon, inscribed 'The gift of Mrs. Anne
Jackson of Sephton, 1715'; another chalice, with
'The gift of Mrs. Ann Molyneux to the parish church
of Sephton, 1729,' and among the plate marks B.B.
for Benjamin Branker, a Liverpool silversmith; a
cylindrical cup with handle, engraved with a crest
of three arrows, tied with ribbon, and the points
resting on a wreath; and a silver paten, which fits
an old silver chalice now at St. Luke's, Great
Crosby.

The registers begin in 1597, but were not regularly kept until 1615, from which time they are
continuous. (fn. 23)

ADVOWSON

From its position the parish of
Sefton appears to have been taken
from that of Walton. The earliest
record of its independent existence is in 1203, when
the abbot of Combermere and others, by virtue of a
commission from Innocent III, adjudicated in a dispute as to certain tithes in Crosby between the prior
of Lancaster and the rector of Sefton. (fn. 24) In 1291
the value of the benefice was £26 13s. 4d., (fn. 25) and in
1340 it was assessed at 40 marks for the ninth of
sheaves, lambs, and wool. (fn. 26) The net value in 1535,
including the rectory house, was £30 1s. 8d. (fn. 27) By
1718 this had increased to £300, (fn. 28) and now the gross
value is said to be £1,300. (fn. 29)

The Molyneux family, as lords of Sefton, were the
patrons, (fn. 30) until after the Revolution, when Caryll,
Lord Molyneux, being disqualified by his religion
from presenting, sold the advowson to a connexion,
George, earl of Cardigan. (fn. 31) It is found in a list of
the Molyneux properties made in 1770, but had been
finally disposed of in 1747 to the Rev. James Rothwell, vicar of Deane, (fn. 32) whose representatives, the trustees
of the late marquis de Rothwell, of Sharples Hall,
are the present patrons. (fn. 33)

Of the earlier rectors little is known; Dr. Anthony
Molyneux, 1536–57, was the most distinguished. In
1541, in addition to the rector and two chantry
priests there were only two others recorded in the
parish, Hugh Whitfield and Robert Ballard, paid respectively by the rector and Sir William Molyneux, (fn. 70)
but eight clergy appeared at the visitation in 1548.
Besides the parish church there was the chapel at
Great Crosby to be served. Even in 1554 comparatively little change was shown, the rector,
Anthony Molyneux, his curate, and four others
appearing. In 1562 Master Robert Ballard, the
rector, an opponent of the Elizabethan changes,
appeared by proxy, his curate coming in person;
three others, nominally attached to the parish, were
absent. Next year the rector was described as decrepit, but his curate appeared; the names of the
other three, entered from an old list by the registrar's
clerk, have been crossed out. In 1565, no one was
recorded but the rector, John Finch, whose name is
written over that of Robert Ballard. (fn. 71) John Finch
died or resigned shortly afterwards, and in 1568
John Nutter, afterwards dean of Chester, succeeded.
Though 'a preacher,' he seems to have been but a
money-seeking pluralist, who went with the times
and joined, perhaps rather to procure favour than
out of zeal, in the persecution of his recusant
parishioners. (fn. 72) He had in 1590 an assistant, who
was 'no preacher.' (fn. 73) About 1610 the conditions
remained unaltered; the incumbent, Mr. Turner,
was a preacher, but the curate of Great Crosby was
not. (fn. 74)

The Parliamentary Commissioners in 1650 were
satisfied with the two ministers they found in the
parish, but recommended that two more churches
should be erected, one at Ince Blundell and the
other at Litherland, 'both places being well situated
for conveniency of many inhabitants and distant from
any church or chapel two miles and upwards, the want
of such churches being the cause of loitering and
much ignorance and popery.' (fn. 75) No steps, however,
seem to have been taken to build them. Bishop
Gastrell found that there were 310 families in the
parish in 1718, and 156 'Papists,' with two
chapels; there was only one dissenting family. (fn. 76) The
return of 1767 allows 603 'Papists' to Sefton and
154 to Crosby. (fn. 77) The growth of the seaside towns
during the last century has totally altered the conditions; the Nonconformists, for instance, formerly
unknown, have now many churches and meetingplaces.

There were only two endowed chantries in Sefton
church at the time of the confiscation in 1548, and
those were of recent establishment. By her will of
1528 Margaret Bulkeley, widow, gave various lands
to Sir William Leyland and other feoffees, to find
'an able and honest priest to say and celebrate mass
and other divine service … at the altar of our
Blessed Lady of Pity,' for her soul and the souls of
John Dutton and William Bulkeley, formerly her
husbands, and for others. (fn. 78) This chantry was in the
south chapel. Robert Parkinson, one of the feoffees,
was the only cantarist of the foundation; he died in
or before 1554. The endowments, which included
the mill at Thornton, were valued at £4 14s. a year. (fn. 79)
The second chantry, in the north chapel, was founded
in 1535 by Edward Molyneux, rector. (fn. 80) The only
priest was Thomas Kirkby, probably he whose presentation to Aughton caused much dispute. (fn. 81) The
amount of the endowment was £5 18s. 3d. (fn. 82)

CHARITIES

In 1718 Bishop Gastrell found
about £400 had been given by
various persons to charities in the
parish, apart from Great Crosby School; 'all these
sums,' he says, 'are in good hands and the interest
duly paid.' (fn. 83) The charity commissioners of 1828
found various 'poor's stocks' in existence, the origin
of which was unknown. (fn. 84) There was then only one
charity for the whole parish, and in 1898 it was
found to have been 'discontinued before living
memory.' (fn. 85)

For Sefton quarter the poor's stock was £84 in
1828, but it had been lost before 1898. (fn. 86) On the
other hand, a benefaction by Anne Molyneux in
1728 had been increased by several donations, and
the net income of £6 4s. was in 1898 distributed by
the rector to six widows. (fn. 87) The Netherton poor's
stock of £120 in 1828 is supposed to have included
Peter Halewood's gift of £100 in 1815, afterwards
augmented by £200 bequeathed by his daughter
Margaret; the interest, £10 17s. 6d. net, is distributed by trustees appointed by the parish council. (fn. 88)
James Holland Lancaster desired £100 to be given as
a prize for St. Philip's National School, Litherland;
and in 1886 his representatives carried out his wish. (fn. 89)

For Great Crosby the £10 left by John Lurting
and James Rice had been gradually augmented, and
in 1898 was supposed to be represented by £44;
formerly the interest was applied to apprenticing poor
boys, but now is handed to the vicar of Great Crosby
to be used for the poor at his discretion. (fn. 90) Over
£1,000 has in more recent times been given by the
brothers John and Samuel Bradshaw. (fn. 91) Thomas
Fowler's bequest of £20 for binding poor children to
trades appears to have been lost, (fn. 92) but the interest on
Anne Molyneux's £10 provides a junior prize in
divinity for Merchant Taylors' School. (fn. 93) George
Blinkhorn of Great Crosby, by his will dated 1820,
charged his lands with £4 a year for the benefit of
the poor; this continues in force. (fn. 94)

At Little Crosby in 1828 the poor received
£2 7s. 6d. a year, and a small portion of this is still
paid, a voluntary rate being levied. (fn. 95) Various sums
have been given for the school at Ince Blundell, (fn. 96) and
£5 10s. is still paid to the priest in charge of the
mission there for the benefit of the poor; but as the
'constable's levy' can no longer be enforced, various
sums charged upon it for the poor have ceased to be
paid. (fn. 97) Edward Holme in 1695 left the residue of
his estate as a poor's stock for Thornton; it realized
£100, now said to be represented by a field in
Holmer Green, let at 10s. a year. The parish
council has charge of this charity. (fn. 98)

3. Elizabeth Abraham of Thornton, a
widow, took the oath of abjuration in
1649 to secure her cottage and little plot
of land; Royalist Comp. P. (Rec. Soc.
Lancs. and Ches.), i, 7–9.
William Bootle alleged that 'his
father and mother were Catholics and by
threats and hard usage had endeavoured
to keep him from his church and to educate him in popery, but finding they could
not prevail with him therein, turned him
out of doors'; the authorities had sequestered his father's small estate at Holmore
Green in Thornton for recusancy, and
William would be ruined unless this
could be restored to him, now that his
father was dead; ibid. i, 210–13, Index of
Royalists (Index Soc.), 42. The committee
did not altogether believe this story; S.P.
Cal. of Com. for Comp. iv, 2844.
Other humble 'delinquents' were Lawrence Johnson and George Leyland of
Crosby, Ellen Maghull of Aintree, and
Edmund Raphson of Ince Blundell;
Royalist Comp. P. iv, 33, 93, 112, 172.
See also the case of Humphrey Blundell;
ibid. i, 197. William Arnold, James
Rice, and Edward Rice of Crosby had
their estates sold under the Act of 1652;
Index of Royalists, 41, 43, 44.
Edmund Ralphson of Ince Blundell
complained that his discharge was refused, though he was always a Protestant
and frequented the parish church; he was
suffering through a confusion with another
of the same name and place; Cal. of Com.
for Comp. iv, 2627. His discharge was
granted.
Thomas Rothwell of Great Crosby was
a victim of the other side; he was arrested
by the Royalists while for a short time
they held the castle of Liverpool, and
charged with having enlisted under
Colonel Moore, which, as he was warned,
was enough to hang him; Royalist Comp.
P. i, 43, 44.

12. Their names were Thomas Stanley
of Cross Hall, Robert Moss of Sand Hills,
John Atherton of Walton, Rev. Henry
Heathcote (rector of Walton), Henry Gill
of Ormskirk, William Halladay of the
Breck in Walton, Henry Porter of
Bretherton, James Waring of Knowsley,
Roger Ryding of Croston, Rev. Richard
Prescott of Upholland, and William
Gregson of Liverpool.

13. The names of the lands affected are
given, 'moss,' 'marsh,' and 'carr' being
frequent, while 'summer-worked Hey'
(in Melling) shows that the field was
available for only a short time in the year.

14. Trans. Hist. Soc. xxii, 241–5. The
names of owners of land fronting the sea
are given.

16. A late twelfth-century capital was
found in pulling down an old schoolhouse
which stood close to the churchyard wall
on the north-west, and may have belonged to a former building of which no
other remains exist.

24. Lanc. Ch. (Chet. Soc.), i, 66, 67.
Roger of Poitou had given tithes from
his demesne lands, including Great Crosby,
to the church at Lancaster, and this was
confirmed by John when count of Mortain;
ibid. 8, 15. In 1193 the bishop of
Coventry confirmed Count John's grant,
and about the same time Stephen (rector)
of Walton made a composition with the
prior of Lanc. as to various tithes,
including those of Crosby; ibid. 111,
112. It thus appears that Sefton parish
had not then been taken out of Walton.
The dispute of 1203 was concerning
two sheaves from two plough-lands in
Crosby; Richard, the rector, and his
vicar, Robert de Walton, were allowed to
have them for life, paying 2s. a year, and
afterwards the prior was to have the
sheaves.

28. Notitia Cestr. (Chet. Soc.), ii, 216–20.
There had been forty acres of glebe, but
almost all had been annexed by the lords
to their demesne, which was exempt from
tithe. The tithes of Great Crosby, worth
£100, were leased to Lord Molyneux for
£4. A new rectory was built in 1723.
There were two churchwardens, chosen
by the townships in turn.
Among the deeds at Croxteth is a
lease, dated 1739, from Rector Egerton
to Lord Molyneux of the tithes of Sefton,
Aintree, &c., and New Park at Netherton
for £13 a year and a fat buck.
In 1781 the rector observed that no
tithes were received from heath and uncultivated lands, and that by ancient custom
'such kind of land is tithe free for the
term of seven years after the first breaking upon or ploughing thereof.' The
result was that the tenants often ploughed
it for seven years, thereby exhausting it,
and then left it.

30. This will be seen from the list of
rectors. In the fifteenth century there
seems to have been an intention to
appropriate the rectory to the abbey of
Merivale, in exchange for the manor of
Altcar; Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiv, 125.

36. He was a younger son of Richard de
Molyneux of Sefton. For his dispute
with the rector of Walton see the account
of the latter church. He had a son
Thomas, to whom between 1323 and
1336 he made a grant of 14 acres of
moor in Litherland; Croxteth D. Genl.
i, 23; the mother was apparently Joan,
daughter of William le Boteler; ibid.
n. 20. In 1339 Thomas de Molyneux,
son of Joan le Boteler, was pardoned, on
account of his service in the wars, for
participation in the murder of Sir William
le Blount, sheriff, at Liverpool; Cal. of
Pat. 1338–40, p. 229.

38. Lich. Epis. Reg. ii, fol. 113b. He
was described as 'clerk.' He probably
belonged to the family of Massey of Sale,
and seems to have been rector of a mediety
of Lymm also; Ormerod, Ches. (ed.
Helsby), i, 593; see also Dep. Keeper's Rep.
xxxvi, App. 328, &c.

39. Ormerod, Ches. (ed. Helsby), iii, 799.
Jordan de Holme had been appointed to
Stockport in the previous January, and
his successor, John de Massey, held it till
his death in 1376. He had also been
rector of Ashton-on-Mersey, which he
resigned at the same time as Stockport,
in favour of another John de Massey of
Sale (ibid. i, 561), who was ordained
priest in June 1365; Lichfield Epis. Reg. v,
fol. 90b. He was a canon of St. John's,
Chester; Ormerod, Ches. i, 309. Jordan
died 14 Oct. 1376; he had leave to absent himself for one year in Sept. 1364,
and for two years in Sept. 1369, and to
let his church to farm; Lichfield Epis.
Reg. v, fol. 9, 22.

40. Ibid. iv, fol. 88. John of Gaunt presented, as guardian of Richard, heir of
Sir William de Molyneux, deceased. Oke
was in minor orders only.

41. Ibid. iv, fol. 89. He was probably of
illegitimate birth, requiring a dispensation;
he was made subdeacon in Sept. 1378,
deacon in the following Dec., and received letters dimissory for the priesthood
in Feb. 1378–9; ibid. vii, fol. 122b; v,
fol. 119b, 120b, 32; also vii, fol. 174 for
an ordinance as to Sefton. In April
1392, he had leave of absence, 'in locis
honestis,' for a year, and in Feb. 1393–4
a similar leave, 'provided the cure be not
neglected and the rectory buildings be
duly constructed'; ibid. vi, fol. 128, 131.

42. Ibid. vii, fol. 92. The patrons were
Master Richard Winwick, canon of Lincoln, James de Langton, Roger Winter,
and John Totty, as feoffees of Richard de
Molyneux, who died in 1397; Lancs. Inq.
p.m. (Chet. Soc.), i, 70. Roger Hawkshaw was 'cousin' of Richard Winwick;
dying 2 Feb. 1414–15, he was buried in
Lincoln Cathedral, where there used to
be a memorial brass; Peck, Desiderata
Curiosa, bk. viii, 24.

43. John Totty, mentioned in the last
note, had long been a chaplain at Sefton;
he is named as rector in 1416, and again
in 1424; Norris D. (B.M.), n. 600, to
which his seal is appended; and Blundell
of Crosby D. K. 28.

44. Richard de Haydock, rector of Sefton,
was the feoffee of Robert de Parr in 1427;
Ct. of Wards and Liveries, box 13 A, n.
FD 14.

45. Lichfield Epis. Reg. ix, fol. 121.
The patrons were William de Heth, rector of Grappenhall, Richard de Balderston, and Thomas de Urswick.

47. Ibid. xii, fol. 100b. The patrons
were Robert Molyneux, esquire, and
Richard Law, priest, feoffees of Sir
Richard Molyneux, deceased. In 1471
John Molyneux became rector of Walton
also, and prebendary of Lichfield ten years
later; Le Neve, Fasti. He founded a
chantry at Walton. Simon Hewison of
Litherland, who died in 1465, by his will
desired to be buried in the cemetery of
St. Helen's, Sefton; from the inventory
of his goods it appears that he owed
2s. to St. Mary of the church of Sefton (Sce. Marie ecclesie de Sefton);
Moore D. n. 703. This may refer to
the altar of Our Lady of Pity, at which
the Bulkeley chantry was afterwards
founded.

48. Lich. Reg. xii, fol. 119b. The patrons
—James Stanley, clerk, Sir Christopher
Southworth, Richard Clifton, and Reynold
Dyo, clerk—had a grant from Sir Thomas
Molyneux of Sefton, deceased. There
was a dispute as to the right, Henry
Molyneux and Robert Mercer being presented; they appeared before the bishop
at Eccleshall in July, and he decided
in favour of Henry's claim; Robert
Mercer, however, was to be paid £12,
and have £7 yearly for seven years,
and he was to pray for the souls of
Sir Thomas Molyneux and the late
rector; ibid. fol. 157. A Henry Molyneux, canon of Exeter, made his will
4 March, 1489–90, and it was proved
6 July, 1491; Gisborne Molineux,
Molyneux Family, 126. Another Henry
Molyneux, priest, founded a chantry at
Halsall.

49. Lich. Epis. Reg. xii, fol. 122b. The
patrons were Richard Molyneux, the son
and heir of Sir Thomas, a minor, Richard
Clifton, esquire, and Reynold Dyo, priest.
James Molyneux had been rector of
Grafton, Notts. in 1484; Cal. of Pat.
1476–85, p. 445.

50. Lich. Epis. Reg. xiii–xiv, fol. 56. He
was also rector of Ashton-under-Lyne and
Walton and prebendary of Salisbury; he
founded the Molyneux chantry at Sefton.
He was the youngest son of Sir Thomas
Molyneux, and apparently his mother's
favourite; a large part of his time was
given to lawsuits.

51. Ibid. 35. He was also rector of
Walton. He built or restored the revestry
and chancel. He was a younger son of
Thomas Molyneux of Hawton, and educated at Oxford; the garden wall of Magdalen College is said to have been built by
him. His will is printed by Piccope—
Wills (Chet. Soc.), ii, 263; in it he mentions his books of divinity, and the sermons, both Latin and English, written
in his own hand; he would have 'no
month's mind'—meaning probably the
feasting then customary. For his Oxford career see Caröe and Gordon, Sefton, 65, &c. He is said to have built
schools by the church; these were
turned into cottages and later demolished;
ibid. 54.

53. Paid first-fruits 23 Nov. 1564; Lancs.
and Ches. Recs. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and
Ches.), ii, 409, from which volume other
references to these payments are taken.
He had been vicar of Walton.

54. Paid first-fruits 21 Feb. 1567–8.
He was also rector of Aughton, 1577, and
of Bebington, 1579; ibid. ii, 409. He
had appointments in Chest. Cath., of
which he became dean in 1589. He
died at Sefton, suddenly. After his death
there were disputes as to his property
as it was supposed that he had hidden
his money; ibid. ii, 336. Anthony
Nutter of Goldshaw Booths in 1602 gave
Sir R. Molyneux a receipt for £40, his
share (and his wife's) of the dean's property; Croxteth D. See also Ches.
Sheaf (ser. 3), v. 95. He seems to have
been curate of Eccles in 1563; ibid. i,
34.

55. Act books at Chest. He paid firstfruits 15 Oct. 1602. Previously schoolmaster at Wigan; Bridgeman, Wigan
(Chet. Soc.), 235. He it was who for
some years refused to allow 'popish recusants' to be buried at Sefton; see the
account of Little Crosby.

57. He was instituted thrice, and twice
paid first-fruits. The institutions from
this time are given from the books,
P.R.O. in Lancs. and Ches. Antiq. Notes,
i, ii. The king claimed the patronage,
and the second Lord Molyneux, who came
of age about 1640, seems also to have
claimed it; at Croxteth are three separate presentations—Samuel Hyde on 25
June, 1639; David Lloyd, 5 Nov.; and
Edward Moreton, 8 Nov.; Croxteth D.
Gen. iii, 14–16. Moreton was ejected by
the Parliament in 1643, but reinstated in
1660, immediately after the Restoration.
He was a son of William Moreton, of
Moreton near Congleton, and a fellow
of King's Coll, Camb.; rector of Tattenhall, and prebendary of Chester; 'not
evenly sharing good fortune and bad,'
says his epitaph in the church, 'but
to either equal.' His son William became bishop of Kildare and Meath.
The Hearth Tax returns show that
the rectory had fourteen hearths in 1666;
Lay Subs. Lanc. 250 / 9.

58. His name should probably be expunged
from the list of rectors, as he had no legal
title. He was described by the commissioners of 1650 as 'an able and godly
minister, painful in his cure'; Commonwealth Ch. Surv. (Rec. Soc. Lancs. and
Ches.), 85. He had been previously
stationed at Liverpool, and was a friend
of the Moores of Bank Hall. Calamy
describes him as an Oxf. man, but it
may be noted that a Joseph Thomson
of Langtree near Wigan, a relative of the
Rigbys of Burgh, went up to St. John's
Coll., Camb., in 1622; Kenyon MSS.
(Hist. MSS. Com.), 26, 30, 55. After
1660 he appears to have continued
as curate at Sefton, for he signed the
minutes down to 1669; Trans. Hist. Soc.
(New. Ser.), xi, 95. He afterwards lived
at Ormskirk, using, so it is related, his
private means liberally for the relief of
ejected Nonconformists; Halley, Lancs.
Puritanism, ii, 190, 135. He was buried
at Ormskirk in 1671.

59. There was in this case a double
presentation; in that of Chas. II, who
claimed by lapse, Bradford is called 'exchaplain in ordinary'; Pat. 27 Chas. II,
pt. iii, n. 3. A 'caveat' was issued to
the bishop on behalf of Anne Elcock, of
Fulford near York, widow of Anthony
Elcock, D.D.

60. This was an exchange, Sefton and
Bexhill. Jonathan Brideoak was also
rector of Mobberley in Cheshire, where
the register has the following entry:—
'Mr. Jonathan Brideoak, B.D., and a
long time fellow and also Junior Bursar
of St. John's College in the University of
Cambridge, came down into this country
and after the death of Mr. James Stanley,
late rector of this parish of Mobberley
(who died April the 8th, 1674), he married
Mary Mallory, widow of Tho. Mallory,
gent: (July the 16, 1674) of the Old
Hall of Mobberley. By which said Mary
his wife the said Mr. Jonathan Brideoake
had the presentation of this church of Mobberley as true and undoubted Patroness,
and in August in the year 1678, he the
said Mr. Jon. Brideoake made an exchange of the living of Bexill in Sussex
(which was at that time given him by his
brother Dr. Ralph Brideoak, late dd.,
Bishop of Chichester) with Dr. Bradford
for his living of Sephton in Lancashire.
He the said Jon. Brideoake died at Mobberley the 6th of April, 1684, being Low
Sunday. So that it appears he was Rector
of Mobberley nine years and about 3 quarters and of Sephton five years and a halfe.
He was buried the ninth day of April,
1684, in the Coll. Ch. of Manch. in
the Procession way over against the
Pulpit, the ancient Buriall place of that
family, from Chetham Hill, near Manchester in Lancashire.'

61. Also rector of Walton. The patron
presented by grant from Caryll, Lord
Molyneux. In the Chest. Act Book
Lord Molyneux only is named. A commission was issued for an inquiry as to
the right of patronage, the University
of Camb. having presented William Needham, M.A., Emmanuel Coll.; there are
numerous letters concerning this in Raines
MSS. xxxviii, 475, &c.

62. There was another dispute as to the
patronage, Mr. Egerton of Warrington
and Mr. Hartley of Ireland having been
presented. The matter was argued in
Sefton church on 7 March, 1721–2,
with nine clergymen and nine laymen on
the jury, and the decision was in favour of
the former; entry in the Register Book,
and N. Blundell, Diary, 184.

63. Rector of Warrington till 1723, when
he was appointed to Cheadle, holding this
with Sefton until his death; from 1746
a curate represented him at Sefton.

65. Son of the previous rector. For
some reason the rectory remained vacant
for eight months, when the bishop collated Mr. Rothwell, who was himself
the patron. He was of Brasenose Coll.,
Oxf. He died suddenly on Easter Sunday (5 April), 1863, aged ninety-two.
He was celebrated as a reader of the
Church service; a memoir with portrait
is given in Caröe and Gordon's Sefton, 85,
&c. Among other things this account
states that about 1830 'it was customary
for the two daughter churches in the
parish to be closed at the three festivals
Easter, Whitsunday, and Christmas Day,
and for their clergymen and parishioners
to repair to the parish church and officiate
at its services.'

66. He was educated at Corpus Christi
and Downing Coll., Camb.; M.A. 1841,
LL.D. 1862; kt. of the order of St.
Charles; count of Monaco; author of
Remarks on Foreign Titles, &c. He held
the sinecure rectory of Calcethorpe, and
had been vicar of Great Eversden.

67. Died 21 May, 1883. He was of
Queen's Coll., Oxf.; M.A. 1860; vicar
of Lever Bridge, Bolton, from 1867 to
1871. He edited the records of the Mock
Corporation of Sefton.

71. These particulars are from the Chest.
visit. lists for the years named. For the
ornaments of the church in 1552 see Ch.
Goods (Chet. Soc.), 101.

72. Crosby Rec. (Chet. Soc.), 23. He
may have thought it advisable to take
action, for he was delated to the Government as showing great favour to 'papists';
Lydiate Hall, 260, quoting S.P. Dom.
Eliz. ccxv.

73. Gibson, Lydiate Hall, 249 (quoting
S.P. Dom. Eliz. ccxxxv, n. 4).
In 1592 the only presentation made
was against Ralph Williamson, who had
'had a child christened and his wife
churched; not known where,' and who
was excommunicated; Trans. Hist. Soc.
(New Ser.), x, 190.

74. Kenyon MSS. (Hist. MSS. Com.), 13.
At the bishop's visitation in 1609 there
were the rector, his curate, two schoolmasters, and a 'reader' at Great Crosby;
Raines MSS. xxii, 298.

75. Commonwealth Ch. Surv. (Rec. Soc.
Lancs. and Ches.), 85. The minister was
paying to Mrs. Moreton, wife of the
ejected rector, 'a delinquent,' a fifth part
of the profits, according to an order by
the committee. See Plund. Mins. Accts.
(Rec. Soc. Lancs. and Ches.), i, 4, 7, 54.

78. Trans. Hist. Soc. xxxiv, 130–4. She
gave particular directions as to the services to be performed. Once a quarter
the priest was to say 'Placebo,' 'Dirige,'
Commendation, and Mass of Requiem, with
all suffrages and services pertaining; at
the anniversary of her death, or within
three days, an obit; every Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday, but on other days as
he was disposed, to say mass, adding a
De Profundis at the further lavatory; on
Fridays once a quarter mass of the Name
of Jesus, and five times in the year mass
of the Five Wounds, for the souls of herself and others; also mass on St. Margaret's Day, before the image of this saint in
the church; and on the five principal feasts
of Our Lady and on the Visitation, and
within their octaves, three masses of the
feast, with the collect, 'Deus, firma spes.'
The priest chosen was to be 'an able and
honest priest and learned to sing his plainsong and to help to sing in the choir at
matins, mass, evensong, and other divine
service in the said church of Sefton on
festival days.' In addition, he was to
manage the properties assigned for the
foundation.

79. Raines, Chantries (Chet. Soc.), 109.
This chantry had a chalice, two old vestments and a missal. The lands were in
Cuerdale and Thornton. See also Valor
Eccl. (Rec. Com.), v, 223.
The lands were granted by James I to
William Blake and others; Pat. 4 Jas. I,
pt. xiii.

80. Raines, op. cit. III; Valor Eccl. (Rec.
Com.), v, 224. It would seem from
one of the deeds preserved at Croxteth
(Genl. i, 84) that the family were able
to rescue the intended endowment from
the king's hands.

82. Raines, op. cit. 114. The rent was
derived from a number of scattered parcels of land. There was no plate.

83. Notitia Cestr. ii, 219, 221. Some
of the benefactions were appropriated to
particular townships.

84. The accounts of the charities are
derived from the End. Char. Rep. for
the parish of Sefton, issued in 1899;
this includes a reprint of the report of
1828.

85. End. Char. Rep. 1, 8. Samuel
Thomas left £5, the interest of which
was to provide, on St. Thomas's Day,
sixty penny loaves; these were set
'on the parish bier, which was placed
for that purpose on the grave of the
donor.'

86. Op. cit. 1, 8. Of the £84 £30 had
been invested in the Ormskirk Workhouse and was 'lost' by the dissolution
of the old union in 1834; the remainder
was lent to the highway surveyors, and
interest seems to have been paid down to
1879.

87. Anne Molyneux's gift was for bread
to be given to the poor on Sundays.
The augmentations came from William
Thompson of Litherland, 1829, who left
£100—on this the poor of Litherland
have a claim — Robert Davenport of
Sefton, coachman, £5 in 1845, and an
unknown donor £3.

88. Op. cit. 2, 10. Nothing is known as
to the other £20 existing in 1828.

90. Op. cit. 4, 24. The benefaction of
Lurting and Rice is mentioned by Bishop
Gastrell (Notitia, ii, 221); it was for the
poor generally, and was increased by £15
left by George Williamson in 1750. In
1828 £38 in the hands of the curate was
supposed to represent this sum, which
was in some way confused or interchanged with Fowler's benefaction.

91. Report, 24, 25. John Bradshaw of
Great Crosby in 1867 bequeathed £100,
and Samuel Bradshaw in 1879 gave £550
and an eighth of the residue of his
personal estate, £368 9s. 4d. A portion
of the interest, according to the will of
the donors, is devoted to the poor, in
conjunction with the last named charity;
the remainder is given to several Ch. of
Engl. schools.

92. Op. cit. 3, 24. The money was
given before 1733, and in 1787, when it
amounted to £30, it was paid, with £9
held by the town for the poor, towards
making a stone drain at Thornback Pool;
£1 19s. as interest was in 1828 paid to
the curate of Great Crosby for the benefit
of the poor, but all trace of it is now lost,
no payment having been made out of the
rates 'within living memory.'

93. Op. cit. 4, 23. The testatrix desired
the interest to be 'laid out yearly in
Church Catechisms and other good books
amongst the poor children coming to
Crosby School.'

94. Op. cit. 24. The charity did not
become operative until 1846, when John
Blinkhorn, the testator's father, died.
The property, consisting of a field in
Thorpe Lane, &c., was sold before
1862.

95. Op. cit. 4, 5, 27. Thomas Cross of
Little Crosby left £40 to the lay-layers
and other officers, the capital to be spent
on the highways or other public work,
while of the interest half should be paid
to the officiating priest of Little Crosby
chapel, and the other half among poor
housekeepers. In addition £1 2s. 6d.
had from 1762 been paid to the poor as
interest on the poor's stock of the town,
and 5s. for bread had been paid by the
overseers since 1783, the donors being
unknown. The report of 1898 states
that the payments from the rates cannot
now be enforced, the 'constable' having
ceased to be a parish officer since 1872.
The payment to the priest had been made
down to 1893; and the payment to the
poor has been reduced from £2 10s. to
£1. No bread is given.

96. Op. cit. 5, 27. In 1828 there was
a school at Ince, supposed to belong to
the inhabitants of the township and
repaired by them. The township authorities make no claim to the site; but it is
stated that the present school, built in
1843, has an endowment of £1,693, of unknown origin. This capital stock was in
1887 in the hands of the Roman Catholic
bishop of Liverpool; interest at the rate
of 4 per cent. is paid to the manager of
the school.

97. Op. cit. 5, 28. In 1784 as much as
£13 4s. 6d. was paid by the township to the
poor; this included the interest of £100 left
by Mrs. Elizabeth Prevarius in 1759, and
of £5 left by Richard Tristram in 1727.
Mrs. Prevarius was probably the housekeeper at Ince Blundell Hall of that
name; the capital had by 1828 been
doubled. In this year £14 14s. 6d. in
all was distributed. The £5 10s. now
paid is the interest on the Prevarius
fund.

98. Op. cit. 6, 29. There is no record
of the conversion of the £100—which
had been increased to £110 by 1774—
into the present property.